Prevention Academy – Who Are We, and What Do We Do

Cura Personalis

That’s Latin for “Care for the Whole Person.”  Our approach to upstream prevention is holistic and comprehensive.  We know that many factors influence substance use among teens.  We serve communities of diverse backgrounds and cultures; we know that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to prevention.  We provide resources to all our kids and families, mindful that substance use is only one factor affecting the whole person.  Our goal is to keep kids healthy.

Prevention Academy is an upstream, schools-based substance misuse prevention organization housed in SJU's School of Education and Human Development, serving the students and families of Montgomery and Delaware Counties.

We’re Not the “Drug Talk”

Prevention Academy is not the substance abuse education that you’re used to.  We provide an upstream, public-health-based model of primary universal prevention. We provide education about substances for all kids, before they use substances or if they have begun.  Our goal is to celebrate and uplift the health that kids already have.  All use equals risk: youth substance use interrupts the processes of brain development during the critical period of adolescence and can make teen users susceptible to developing substance use disorders and addiction.  Those who begin substance use before age 14 have the greatest risk of developing a substance use disorder.  Less than 10% of addiction begins in adulthood.   We’re not here to make judgements on the morality of substance use – we’re here to give kids the information and resources to prevent or delay substance use.   All kids want to be healthy; they will make healthy choices when given the structure to do so.  Most kids aren’t using alcohol – and data shows that the prevalence of teen alcohol use is decreasing – but they are under the impression that most of their peers drink.  We want our conversations with students to start conversations in their daily lives with the adults who care about them.  Prevention Academy sheds light on the reality of substance use in a way that's safe, approachable and conversational. 

We’re local – Serving Delaware and Montgomery Counties

Prevention Academy operates on grant funding from opiate settlements in Delco and we have recently scaled our services to Montgomery County.  Thanks to that funding, we are able to provide comprehensive and community-informed prevention services at no cost to our schools and families.  We have delivered programming in elementary, middle, and high schools; in public schools and archdiocesan schools; and from small groups, to classrooms, to large gatherings such as assemblies.  We have a team of experienced professionals and potent resources.   We provide information about how substances affect the developing brain.  We engage in our communities and for our communities.  Prevention Academy offers expertise, factual information, and valuable resources – with no judgment, ever.  

1 Jordan, Chloe J, and Susan L Andersen. “Sensitive periods of substance abuse: Early risk for the transition to dependence.” Developmental cognitive neuroscience vol. 25 (2017): 29-44. 

2 The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. “Adolescent Substance Use: America’s #1 Public Health Problem”  Columbia University, June 2011, pp.125

3 NIDA. "Reported use of most drugs among adolescents remained low in 2024." National Institute on Drug Abuse, 17 Dec. 2024.